tantamount
adjective
Did you know?
Although tantamount (from the Anglo-French phrase tant amunter, meaning “to amount to as much”) was used three different ways in the early 17th century—as a noun, verb, and adjective—the adjective form has since proven paramount to English users: it’s still in use while the noun and verb are obsolete. This is not to say that the adjective hasn’t experienced change over the years. While it was once acceptable to use tantamount in a variety of different sentence structures, nowadays it is almost always followed by the word to. And to use it before a noun, as in “the two old friends exchanged tantamount greetings,” would now be considered, er, tantamount to riding a penny-farthing or boneshaker onto the expressway.
Examples of tantamount in a Sentence
Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 14 Mar. 2025
Grant cancellations are tantamount to instantaneous salary cuts for scientists, and can force them to halt studies, fire staff, and tell participants that their time and effort may have been wasted.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 14 Mar. 2025
This would be tantamount to saying that Jack London was first and foremost a sailor.
—Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune, 11 Mar. 2025
This silence flies in the face of Oakland’s rich civil rights history and is tantamount to condoning hate.
—Mark Cohen, The Mercury News, 10 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tantamount
Cite this Entry
“Tantamount.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tantamount. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
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tantamount
adjective
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